British Airways Case Analysis
British Airways Case Analysis
British Airways Case Analysis
department for internal communications was closed,' explains Jerome-Ball. 'BA has suffered
dreadfully for that in terms of morale.
'Cabin crew are an interesting audience: they are committed and proud of what they do, but
easily pissed off, and at the moment they are exactly that,' he adds. 'You cannot talk to the
outside world without an engaged workforce.'
Oldfield says: 'BA has to distinguish between the external sponsorship and garnering internal
engagement at specific moments. (We have) to ensure all the Olympic messages stand out from
each other - and that requires creativity.'
- Bupa
Employee engagement was a vital part of the private healthcare brand's recent marketing
campaign, entitled 'Helping you find healthy'. According to the brand's director of internal
communications, Danielle Spencer, this activity integrated internal communications with
advertising, PR and social media 'like never before'. 'We always try to go first to employees and
involve them. With this campaign, we started the internal campaign three months before we went
live externally. We also made employees the stars of our campaign, featuring their stories as
examples of how we go beyond the day job to help customers,' she says. Research showed that
more than 80% of Bupa employees knew about the campaign via a piece of internal
communications before it had launched on TV.
- Aviva
Bringing its brands together under one global brand was not a straightforward process and
involved engaging more than 50,000 employees across 28 countries. For some staff, the fact that
they would no longer be working for a much-loved, 300-year-old brand - Norwich Union - was
an emotional issue. That's why Aviva management dedicated much time and effort to getting
staff buy-in: the rebrand was announced more than a year before the change was actually made.
That time was spent consulting employees and taking their opinions on board (see below).
- Keep it simple
We had to develop a story that would enable employees to explain in one sentence the business
rationale behind our rebrand to friends and family.
- Communicate with your people first
They have to feel valued and respected throughout the whole process if you're going to be
successful. Your employees are the people who make the transition a positive one for your
customers. Telling them the news first and involving them in the process is a vital part of that.
- Tie your brand and employee promises together
At Aviva, individual recognition is at the heart of what we aim to provide for our customers and
our employees. Introducing internal initiatives that demonstrated recognition was a symbolic and
powerful way of showing our people that our rebrand was about more than just a change in
name.
- Listen
Create a culture where dialogue is unthreatening. Your employees are the people who know your
customers best. Consulting with them throughout the process can provide the insights you need
to move a rebrand from good to great.
DON'T
- Be superficial
Your people will be the first to disengage if something doesn't stand up to what you've promised.
- Rush it
We announced our intention to rebrand more than a year before we made the change.
- Erase your heritage
We have more than 300 years of history, which in some markets is very powerful to customers
and employees. Don't throw that away.